Wind power

Wind power in Germany is leading the way in the field of renewable electricity generation. The installed capacity of all wind turbine generators (WTG’s) in the country amounted to a total of 56,400 megawatts (MW) at the end of 2017 and the WTG’s installed by 50Hertz contributed to approximately one third of this capacity (onshore as well as offshore).

Within the 50Hertz grid area, approximately 36 per cent of all wind turbines installed in Germany feed into the medium and high-voltage grids of the regional distribution system as well as into the extra high-voltage grid of 50Hertz.

Wind power

Wind turbines are the most important form of renewable energy exploitation,generating electricity both on land (onshore) and in the open sea (offshore). Very simply put, they work as wind mills combined with a dynamo: the wind makes the rotor turn and this movement is transformed into electrical energy by a generator.The first wind turbines were already used for electricity generation in the early 20th century. Nevertheless, the worldwide interest in electricity generation by means of wind turbines only began to increase significantly after the oil crises of the 1970s. The development of the large renewable installations that are now common, began in the 1990s and has shown a strongly rising trend that continues to this day. This is due to requirements coming into force within the German Renewable Energy Sources Act (EEG) in the year 2000.

Unlike conventional power plants or renewable biomass installations, the electricity generation from wind energy fluctuates and strongly depending on the weather conditions. Unfortunately, the generational capacity from wind turbines rarely matches the electricity demand at the time. Depending on the wind speed, the volume of electricity generated by wind turbines varies and due to requiring large open spaces for efficient generation, turbines are often found in sparsely populated areas with a correspondingly low electricity demand.

Overhead line Röhrsdorf-Remptendorf 2015. Photo: Jan Pauls

The operators of the German energy supply grids are obliged by the EEG to feed in all electricity generated from renewable sources into the grid with a high priority. In order to maintain the balance between offer and demand, 50Hertz (as transmission system operator, TSO) has to compensate for the fluctuations in generational capacity which, at times, can be considerable.As the TSO is responsible for the grid area in the eastern German states and Hamburg, 50Hertz ensures the permanent balance between the electricity offered and demanded - and therefore maintains a constant grid frequency, which is a decisive factor for supply security.

Below, you will find a summary relating to wind power in the 50Hertz grid area.

Grid area of 50Hertz Transmission: wind power specifications 2014 to 2017

Description

2014

2015

2016

2017

Maximum wind power infeed

11,972 MW

12,832 MW

13,398 MW

14,266 MW

Minimum wind power infeed

0 MW

9 MW

25 MW

5 MW

Largest quarter-hourly jump in wind power

+1,267 MW / -979 MW

+1,191 MW / -1,395 MW

+2,130 MW / -2,487 MW

+1,022 MW / -702 MW

Largest hourly jump in wind power

+2,238 MW / -2,414 MW

+2,017 MW / -2,421 MW

+3,107 MW / -3,137 MW

+2,468 MW / -2,415 MW

Largest daily jump caused by wind power

+8,789 MW

+10,277 MW

+8,382 MW

+10,333 MW

Installed capacity of wind power plants onshore at the end of the year

14,749 MW

15,771 MW

16,791 MW

17,866 MW

Installed capacity of wind power plants offshore at the end of the year

48 MW

336 MW

336 MW

690 MW

The data from the table refer to wind power generational capacity, including direct marketing, and are based on the extrapolation of the actual figures (15 minute mean capacity figures).

The following forecasted and extrapolated data show the wind power being fed into the 50Hertz grid area.

These data are of particular interest for market players such as wind power electricity traders and direct marketers, but also for associations, politics or universities, which is why 50Hertz makes them publically available.

Current forecast

Current activity value: MWDate:

The forecast values for wind power feed-in to the 50Hertz grid area are based on values from service providers. The data provided is always those of 09:00 hrs the previous dayand the publication takes place daily at 18:00 hrs for the entire following 24 hours.

Based on the weather models (e.g. GFS, ECMWF) and the master data (geographic coordinates, address etc.) of the individual PV installations, physical as well as statistical capacities are calculated for the near future of up to eight days.

Forecast values per 15 minutes

For each 15 minute duration, a capacity value is supplied in megawatts (MW). A quarter of an hour for which no values are given, is entered as ‘not available’ (n.a.).

Date

No data available.

Date

From

To

Total [MW]

Onshore [MW]

Offshore [MW]

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A table of the wind power feed-in values, including past values, is available here for download in CSV Format:

Extrapolation

Current activity value: MWDate:

Extrapolated actuals per 15 minutes

The actual (onshore & offshore) wind power feed-in values in the 50Hertz grid area presented in the chart are determined by extrapolation of the current measured values from selected wind farms.

The 15 minute mean from the extrapolation is published as the capacity value in megawatts (MW) for the relevant quarter of an hour. A quarter of an hour for which no values are given, is entered as ‘not available’ (n.a.) up to and including 2008, and is given -1 as value as of 2009.

Date

No data available.

Date

From

To

Total [MW]

Onshore [MW]

Offshore [MW]

Show more
Show less

A table, including past values, is available here for download in CSV Format:

Here you can find our publications on wind power feed-in of the previous years: